


a thanksgiving miracle (and a parade)

by freckledchan



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Inspired by Hallmark Christmas Movies, Thanksgiving
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:00:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,589
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28123482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/freckledchan/pseuds/freckledchan
Summary: Rey is the operations manager for the annual Chicago Thanksgiving Day Parade. She loves her job, her boyfriend, and her life - until the city hires a consultant, Ben Solo, to evaluate the profitability of the parade. Immediately they butt heads, and Rey has to find it in her heart to show Ben what the spirit of Thanksgiving is all about.(Inspired by Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade (2012) and a part of the Reylo Christmas Hallmark AU Collection!)
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 3
Kudos: 19
Collections: Reylo Christmas Hallmark AU Collection





	a thanksgiving miracle (and a parade)

“Good morning, darling.” Poe’s face smiled back at her through the screen, a bunch of pixels that still managed to crack a smile on her face, even as early in the morning as it was. 

“Good morning to you, too.”

“Ah, _en espanol, por favor_.”

“Oh. _Buenos dias, mi novio._ ”

“ _Muy bien._ ”

Rey’s smile grew into a grin. She’d been practicing her Spanish all morning and making good use of her _Rosetta Stone_ membership, and it seemed to have been paying off, at least to Poe. He was the reason she’d started learning, after he’d told her it would be beneficial for their future travels. 

“So, did you finish it yet?”

“Oh, yes!” Rey scrambled to pick up the book on her bedside table, the one under the romance novel she’d _actually_ been reading. Poe’s self-published book about the logistics of building homes for people outside of the earth, which was really an expansion on his dissertation he’d spent years putting together (and talking Rey’s ear off about.) She’d tried to read it, really tried, but most of it went right over her head – not because she wasn’t smart, but because it was really only a topic people interested in aerospace engineering would find interesting. “It was… wonderful.”

“Really, that’s your honest opinion? You didn’t find it too… tedious, or drawn out?” Poe looked earnest, and she hated lying to that face, but she couldn’t exactly tell him how painstakingly boring she’d found it and crush his dreams, either. 

“No, I totally understood everything! It’s… very infor–”

“Ah, I knew you would love it! I’m so happy you did, I worked so hard at it.” He looked at something in the background, stood, and gestured to his laptop; then looked back at Rey and sighed. “Hey, I’m sorry, I have to go, the new student needs my help with something.”

Rey pressed her lips together in a tight smile and nodded, only a little disheartened. “Yeah, you go ahead. Oh, um… one more thing, though,” she hummed, feeling a little cheeky, “I'm very excited for November 14th – and to finally hear what your question is.”

He laughed. “Yeah, well I’m very excited for November 14th – and to finally hear what your answer is.” There was a crash in the background, and Poe swore under his breath. “I love you. I gotta go, bye.”  
  
“Love you too. Bye.” The screen went dark, and Rey smiled to herself. It was hard to be apart from her boyfriend for so long, but he was doing important work. Besides, Rey was almost certain that when he arrived home, he would be ready to settle down and start their lives together. After all, what other question could he have but to propose after having been away from her for so many years? He’d been doing research in a government facility on spacecraft materials and their durability, all very complicated stuff, all very dangerous, doing tests from different altitudes and _blah blah blah._ None of it would matter when he was finally home to be with her.

–

The bell to her best friend’s vintage clothing shop rang as she opened the front door, but instead of being greeted by Rose waiting on the chaise in the middle of the store for her with a cup of tea, there was no one to be found. 

“Close your eyes!” Came her voice from the back of the store, and Rey giggled, covering her eyes with her hands. A second passed, and she heard Rose’s excited footsteps approach. “...and open!” 

Rey opened her eyes to Rose holding out a beautiful white wedding dress for her, with tulle and lace on the skirt and long puffy sleeves. She gasped. “Oh my god, it’s beautiful,” she marveled, taking the hanger from Rose to more closely examine the garment. 

“It’s a 1953 vintage original, just arrived today,” Rose beamed as Rey ran her fingers over the delicate embroidery on the sleeves. “Isn’t it perfect? I knew you’d love it.”  
“It’s so gorgeous. How much is it? Can I afford it?” She huffed. “Actually, I don’t even care if I can afford it, I’ll literally rob a bank to have this dress.” She held it up to herself in front of one of the mirrors hanging on the wall, sighing wistfully. 

“No need. It’s your wedding present,” Rose smiled, coming up behind her and looking over Rey’s reflection. “It’ll look perfect on you.” 

“Are you serious? That’s so sweet,” Rey smiled, turning to give Rose a hug in thanks, “but… he hasn’t asked yet.”

Rose scoffed. “Well, he’s going to.”

Rey couldn’t help but grin again, letting out a giggle. “I know.” She turned back to herself in the mirror, hugging the dress up against her frame. “Ah, this is so gorgeous. Thank you so much.”

“Have you told him yet?”

Rey sighed, face falling a little. “No, not yet. I’m going to, though. I promise.” Rose rolled her eyes and turned back to Rey, arching both of her eyebrows incredulously. “I swear I will! I’m working on it, jeez.”

“Okay, well, if you’re going to spend the rest of your life with him, I think he deserves to know,” Rose replied, taking Rey by the arm. 

–

“You know, you can get over your fear of heights. It’s not impossible.” Rose tutted, brow furrowed as she and Rey walked towards the office building where Rey was headed to work for the day. “You just have to keep at it.”

Rey sighed, exasperated. “I’ve tried a million times, I don’t know how I’m going to just magically _not_ be sick every time I’m in a high place.” Rose nudged her, and she rolled her eyes. “I’ll try one more time before Poe comes home, but it’s not like we’re going to travel right away anyway. I really think he wants to settle down with me here,” she remarked, the smile on her face from daydreaming about her future with Poe swiftly falling as they passed her favorite bookstore. “What happened here?”

Rose stopped on the sidewalk, looking sadly at the building with a “CLOSED” sign hung in the front door. “It’s closed?” She stepped closer, examining the note. “Not just closed, shut down for good.” She stepped back down, a frown gracing her dainty features.

Rey scowled, upset. “What is happening to this city? Historical landmarks being torn down and replaced with shiny new buildings, and for what?” She sighed, looking a little forlorn and remembering the stacks and stacks of books on her shelf at home. “I wonder how many books this store has sold over the years.”

“We should just… chain ourselves to the steps right here and go on a hunger strike. They would never make it past us,” Rose said rather definitively, crossing her arms. 

“I would if I thought it would make a difference,” Rey sighed, patting Rose’s shoulder.

“It wouldn’t,” interrupted a voice from behind them both. Rey turned to see a tall man with dark hair who had just walked out of the empty bookstore. “This building is nothing but a structural hazard. It’s got to be torn down before it falls apart.”

Rey arched an eyebrow at him. “Who are you to decide that?”

The man looked down at her, almost amused at her irritation. “I’m the guy who cared enough about this building to buy it, tear it down, and turn it into the profitable retail space it deserves to be.” He smirked a little, sounding very matter-of-fact.

“Ah, so I should thank you for destroying the bookstore I spent countless hours in as a kid,” Rey shot back, crossing her arms and tugging Rose along. Turning on her heel to leave, she stopped for a moment to turn back to the man. “Do you wash your clothes?”

“I’m sorry?”

“Do you have a pair of jeans that you really love, that make your legs look longer, that you’ve worn for years and are so comfortable even though they’re jeans you could probably wear them to bed? That you’ve worn to that concert or that job interview and have been with you for the hardest times?” The man in front of her looked puzzled, brow furrowed, dark eyes trained on her curiously, if not a little annoyed. “If you spill wine on those jeans, or rip a hole in them, you don’t just throw them away. You patch them, you wash them, you do whatever it takes, because that’s a great pair of jeans and they deserve to be worn again.”

The man was silent a moment, and then he spoke. “I’m sorry, are you trying to compare a pair of jeans to this termite-infested death trap?” He scoffed.

“I bought my first ever books at this place. I used to come and read here after school every single day.” Rey retorted, exasperated.

“Nobody reads books anymore,” the man rolled his eyes, “they download them.” As quickly as he had appeared, he was gone, taking off down the street in the opposite direction, looking huffy. 

Rey turned to Rose with a scowl, her flawless morning thoroughly bruised. “Oh… my god,” Rose spoke, taking Rey’s arm and leading her off in the direction of her office building again. 

“I know. What an asshole,” Rey muttered, shaking her head at his sheer audacity.

“I mean, I was going to say he was super hot, but yeah, that too,” Rose laughed.

–

“Sorry I’m late, I got totally caught up in something important this morning,” Rey apologized as she rushed into the conference room. She wasn’t technically lying, even as her boss raised his eyebrows from across the table. Preserving the dignity of a historical bookstore _was_ important, no matter how many people would just shrug off the demolition of a landmark. 

“Anyways, to get to business. The city has hired an operations management consultant to evaluate the parade’s revenue potential this year.” Rey frowned as she took a seat, biting her tongue. “The mayor wants to see if the parade is cost-effective for the city.”

“I’m sorry, what? The parade isn’t about _money._ ” Rey couldn’t help herself from blurting out. 

“This guy is responsible for the renovation of Starkiller Stadium! He tripled their revenue in six months.”

“Starkiller Stadium? Wasn’t there that terrible accident because of how rushed construction was that ended up injuring a ton of people and costing tens of thousands of dollars in repairs?”

“The repairs of Starkiller Stadium created almost a hundred jobs for the city! Listen, Rey, none of us are particularly happy about this, but we have no choice. This is the mayor’s request, so please, try to work with him? Make sure he feels welcome here, introduce him to everyone, and be charming for once in your life. The parade – and our jobs – may be riding on this.” 

As her boss prattled on at her, Rey folded her arms, avoiding his gaze. “I’m totally charming, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” 

As if on cue, the mystery man entered the conference room, shrugging off his jacket and draping it over the back of one of the chairs. Rey’s jaw nearly dropped. “No way,” she said, probably too loud. She couldn’t help but stare at the exact same asshole she’d argued with twenty minutes earlier on the street in front of the bookstore. Her boss eyed her, pinning her to her seat with a glare. “...no way we got so _lucky_ to work with you!” 

The man, who not even an hour earlier had lectured her on how tearing down her favorite bookstore was necessary and profitable, turned to look at her, carrying the same curious, almost amused expression as he had earlier. Rey’s boss stood and shook his hand. “Ben, this is Rey, our operations manager and historical archivist. There’s nothing she doesn’t know about this parade. She’ll be helping you personally and getting you any information you may need.”

Rey stood and put on an almost pained smile, reluctantly shaking the man’s large hand. He acknowledged her with a _look,_ and then turned to the rest of the conference room, clearing his throat. “I’m a big fan of the parade, I grew up watching it. I look forward to working with you.” 

Everyone seemed to settle, but for the rest of the meeting, Rey couldn’t help but sneak glances at him, begrudgingly remembering Rose’s comment from earlier. Okay, so he was attractive, dark hair feathered back around his face, a foreboding nose standing among intense eyes, and a chiseled jaw. He was attractive, but she didn’t have to like him as a person, she reminded herself. 

As the rest of the people cleared out of the conference room, Rey lingered as Ben started to gather his things and put them back into his briefcase. She stood and approached him, clearing her throat. “This is not going to work.”

He blinked, looking up at her, a frown furrowing his eyebrows. “I’m sorry?”

“ _This._ You could destroy everything that makes this parade what it is. You need to come up with some sort of exit plan, say you’re leaving for personal reasons or something, but–”

“Look. I’m not here to destroy the parade, or whatever you think I’m going to do.” He sighs, interrupting her. “I’m just here to evaluate it.”

“Evaluate it. Whatever.” Rey snorted. She paused, then folded her arms, tone turning quizzical. “You said you grew up here.”

“I did grow up here,” he returned, sounding almost offended. 

“Who is O’Hare Airport named after?”

Ben scoffed. “Lieutenant Commander H. O’Hare, who earned a congressional medal of honor in 1942 after shooting down five Japanese planes during World War II.” 

Rey’s eyes narrowed, scrupulous. “Everyone knows that. What year was the Willis Tower built?”

Ben rolled his eyes, tired of her pop quiz. “1971. It has 110 stories.” Rey, suddenly looking like she’d caught a mouse in a cheese trap, opened her mouth to speak, but he stopped her. “That’s a trick question, because it used to be called the Sears Tower.”

He stood to match her gaze, and Rey swallowed, suddenly feeling small and very intimidated. “Satisfied?” He asked, and he had that smirk on his face again, the same kind of smug look that Rey wanted to slap right off. 

“Where did you watch the parade?”

He had the same matter-of-fact look on his face as he answered her. “The penthouse of the Berrisford Tower on State and Madison.” 

She snapped her fingers, finally cracking a triumphant smile. “Of course! That’s why you don’t understand the parade. You watched it in some cushy little penthouse high up in the air, away from the _people._ I stood in the cold for hours on end just to catch a glimpse of Santa Claus at the end of that parade. When he waved, he waved to me, and it was magical.” 

Ben rolled his eyes but didn’t comment on her anecdote. “Look, we don’t have to like each other, but we do have to work with each other, all right?” He waited for her response, to which she eventually gave a nod and sighed reluctantly. “Right. So let’s just… start over. You can start introducing me to everyone and show me around starting tomorrow, okay?” 

Rey pursed her lips, annoyed, but agreed, looking him up and down once more. “My pleasure.” With that, she was out of the door, wondering how in the hell she was going to turn this one into a Christmas – no, a _Thanksgiving_ miracle. 


End file.
